Three Former Seoul Metro Officials Arrested in Subway Ventilation Filter Bribery Case

Senior officials at Seoul Metro, who are suspected of receiving bribes worth hundreds of millions of won during the process of selecting a supplier for subway ventilation filters, have been arrested.

On May 20, the Seoul Central District Court announced that, after holding pretrial detention hearings (warrant review) the previous day, it had issued arrest warrants for former Head of Technology at Seoul Metro, referred to as Mr. A, former Manager Mr. B, both on charges of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (bribery), and company official Mr. C, who is suspected of offering bribes.

They are accused of exchanging money during the 2023 selection process for a supplier of Seoul subway ventilation equipment, and then ensuring that a specific newly established company was awarded a private contract worth approximately 2.2 billion won.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Anti-Corruption Investigation Unit, which investigated the case, believes that Mr. A and Mr. B received about 200 million won, which is 10% of the contract amount, from the company official in exchange for awarding the private contract.

It was reported that the company which secured the contract at the time had issues with filter performance and had proposed a higher project cost than other companies, yet still entered into a private contract with Seoul Metro.

In particular, Mr. B, who had the authority to select the supplier, is known to have been listed as an inventor on the patent application submitted by the company.

Mr. A retired without disciplinary procedures, while Mr. B was reportedly suspended from his position after being indicted at the end of last year for allegedly accepting golf hospitality from another supplier.